Bitcoin hits new record, crossing $14,000

Bitcoin has briefly hit $US14,000, in what is another milestone in the cryptocurrency's rise.

Bitcoin has briefly hit $US14,000 ($A19,600), in what is another milestone in the cryptocurrency's meteoric rise.

Bitcoin began the year below $US1,000 but continues its sharp rise despite warnings of a dangerous bubble.

The cryptocurrency hit the latest milestone during early trading on Thursday but by late Asian trade it had pulled back to $US13,960, up about 2.5 per cent on the day.

A number of institutional investors are still avoiding Bitcoin, after seeing it rise around 1,100 per cent since the start of the year.

Lilian Chovin, an investment strategist at one of the world's oldest banks, Coutts, said Bitcoin has been "all over the place," adding that its sharp rise has "brought back memories of the dotcom bubble back at the turn of the century".

"Our view at Coutts is that, as an investment asset, electronic currencies like Bitcoin have nothing but sentiment backing them up, are vulnerable to government sanctions and lack the kind of data we look for to gauge value.

"We therefore have no current plans to include them in our investment strategy."